Library News: Won't You be My Neighbor?

Oh, Hi.  It's nice to see you again.  (change out of button-up and into worn-out Megadeath t-shirt)  You know, our libraries are fascinating and wondrous places where all kinds of things can happen. (takes off shoes for more comfortable shoelessness)  Every day, something special is happening in your library, like someone looking for a job or finding a book they read as a kid. (fixes a mixed drink of whiskey, red wine and orange power drink in a goldfish bowl) Let's see what happened in our libraries this week so far, shall we? (lights the porch on fire)


The Newcastle library and art gallery have been closed down indefinitely after local officials widened security from protesters over the removal of some fig trees and other growth.  The fig trees responded by screaming silently as they were fed into a wood chipper. Silly trees. abc.net.au

Lewis Black, comedian, has been named to the honorary board of the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library in Indianapolis.  Black plans to help the library by fundraising through performances and such, as well as dressing in shiny boots and time traveling.  ibj.com

Governor Jerry Brown of California signed in a bill this week that will restrict public library privatization.  The bill will force companies to show they are saving the taxpayers money if they take over public services.  Taxpayers could give less of a crap as long as the paper is there in the morning and the new Nicholas Sparks book is on the shelf. mercurynews

The Folger Shakespeare Library is celebrating the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible, one of the more influential books in history.  King James was not around to comment on the widespread craziness like those weirdos in Westboro. washingtonpost

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is in the process of moving a 340 ton boulder for an art instillation. They should hire out a company to do this, if they can prove they can do it cheaper than a bunch of museum folk, that is.  nytimes

Alec Baldwin donated around $10,000 to the Central Falls library to keep it afloat in these hard economic times.  This is a long way to go to use a library out of state. whdh

Alton Brown Getting Digital; Forgets the Matrix Ate People

TV Personality and chef Alton Brown says his next cook book will be and ebook.

"I want to go where nobody has gone before," Brown said Saturday during an interview at the New York City Wine and Food Festival. "I want to change the way we deal with information in the kitchen." cfnews13

Brown describes one part of the ebook that will have videos shot from many angles that the user can use to pan around him while he is cooking and see every part of the process.  He likened the process to the sci-fi movie The Matrix's special effects.

Kick ass Alton Brown cook book?  Hell yeah.  Comparing it to the Matrix, I get where you are coming from. The comparison does not work for me simply because the movie was about robots that ate people.  Well, not ate, "used as batteries", whatever, potato potato, but keep the movie about retarded kung fu folk fighting all slow mo out of your ebook cookbook workings, please.  The phrase "bullet-time cooking" would have been bad-ass all by itself.

California Says All Library Books Created Equal

A new California law will extend privacy protections for library records to ebooks.  The Reader Privacy Act of 2011 will come into law in Jan 1, 2012 and require government agencies to obtain a court order before accessing electronic retail orders and requests from book sellers. pcmag

Everybody, say it with me now: FREEDOM! That's what I'm talkin' bout.

I Guess Steve Jobs Was More Disappointed by the iPhone 4s Than Anybody

davidgalbraith

Steve Jobs, co-founder, chairman and ex-CEO of Apple computers, passed away today at the age of 56.  In his wake he leaves behind a long legacy of simple, easy to use computing devices that have made their way into nearly every other home in America.  His imprint on the world is vast and he will be missed, not only for his charisma and charm, but for his innovation and impact on not only how we access information but in how we interpret it.  Wired magazine said it best:

"A visionary inventor and entrepreneur, it would be impossible to overstate Steve Jobs’ impact on technology and how we use it. Apple’s mercurial, mysterious leader did more than reshape his entire industry: he completely changed how we interact with technology. He made gadgets easy to use, gorgeous to behold and essential to own. He made things we absolutely wanted, long before we even knew we wanted them. Jobs’ utter dedication to how people think, touch, feel and interact with machines dictated even the smallest detail of the computers Apple built and the software it wrote." Wired

I could be snarky here and point out all the ways Jobs has be condemned as a nightmare to work for, but I feel the title said it best.  Without him, the company may be directionless.  Sure, he could be a dick, but he was a dick that got things done.  The iPhone 4s is possibly just the beginning of crap Apple has plans for that do not include that little bit of "Jobs magic" that made them so special.  I would start selling stock now, folks, because if the trend continues Google's gonna be kicking some ass on the hand held front.

Prison Library News: Two Stories of the Locked Up

Ah, prison.  The place to get away from it all, let your guards down, and take time to focus on your past mistakes without the rest of the world to distract you.  It is like a spa that you can not leave.  You know, except for all the violence and stuff.

Today we look at two stories, one heartwarming and one legal.  Let's get to it.

A program in the Dodge County Jail in Wisconsin allows inmates to record audio books for their children.  The program is meant to connect children with their incarcerated parents and has been a success.  Nothing says "Goodnight, Moon" like 3 to 5 for B&B.  ABCNews

An Alabama prison refused to allow an inmate to read a Pulitzer Prize winning book on the grounds that it was a security threat.  Mark Melvin, the inmate, has sued the prison to allow him to read Slavery by Another Name by Douglas Blackmon, citing censorship.  We can only assume that the inmate found nothing good on cable tv after Charlie Sheen was kicked off 2 1/2 Men this summer.  PCMag

Smithsonian to Whore Out Video Game Exhibit

I'm Batman

The Smithsonian has announced that you too can be a part of their "The Art of Video Games" exhibit next year.  All you have to do to have your name or whatever displayed in the Smithsonian from March to September is give out some of that green, ya feel me?  Starting at $10, donations can be made from this page.  Your name will be taken from your billing information, unless you request different in the comments (barring anything offensive, etc.).  Smithsonian via kotaku

I do not know about you , but I really want a wall of the Smithsonian to be filled with names like "Commndr_Killer" and "Kool_Aider54".  This may be something I can try, even if there is no word yet if they allow URLs, twitter handles, or bad puns from the Simpsons.  I am going to report back as to whether or not Banned Library staff members "Pat McGroin," "Mike Roch," "Ivanna Tinkle," "I. P. Freely" or "Amanda Hugankis" are allowed on the wall.  Wish me luck!

Longmont Library Budgeting for Bedbugs: An Alliteration

After upholstered library benches became breading sites for bedbugs, the Longmont Library in Colorado has had enough with comfortable seating.  The library plans to budget $5,000 for wooden benches this year and more money down the line.  TimesCall

You know what we did back in my day when bedbugs came after us?  Wicker.  And I do not mean that goofy furniture stuff you get from IKEA or whatever.  I mean as in Wicker Man, the original, non-bee style.  Burn that mother down, smiting all the godless bugs back to the hell from which they sprang.